GNT vs GST, a perception battle that spilled over the fringes of North Chennai

Despite the apparent difference in the cityscape, the two stretches on different national highways have striking similarities such as good water resources, bus connectivity.TNN | January 04, 2017, 16:30 IST

A drive down a 10km stretch from Madhavaram Bypass to Red Hills on Grand Northern Trunk (GNT) Road is more about container terminals, warehouses and with a little realty activity.

Despite the apparent difference in the cityscape, the two stretches on different national highways have striking similarities such as good water resources, bus connectivity. Still, the northern fringes of Puzhal and Red Hills are fighting perception battle, bringing to the fore the working class north and the posh south division, prevalent in the city.

A closer look at the developed pockets in the city reveal that the state government’s backing is all that is required to give the developemental boost to an area. The IT corridor on Old Mahabalipuram Road, the well planned East Coast Road were pet projects of former chief ministers M Karunanidhi and J Jayalalithaa respectively. The urban growth on GST Road is also seen as a peripheral development to the IT corridor. Now GNT Road is waiting for the much-needed government boost to transform the area into a planned urban township.

And why not? Realty developers describe the area as a ‘hidden gem’ which has cheap prices, good road connectivity and water resources but yet few people choose to live on the stretch. Data with the Chennai Metropolitan Development Authority (CMDA) reveals the southern fringes have 10 times more housing projects underway when compared to the north. While the authority granted planning permission to more than 4,300 dwelling units in the areas spread between Perungalathur and Guduvanchery last year, it has given nod for a little over 400 dwelling units in the stretch from Madhavaram Bypass and Red Hills. “One can have a 1 bedroom flat for a monthly rent of Rs 2,000 here. This pricing is unimaginable in the southern fringes of the city,” said Govindaraj, a resident of Puzhal Camp, an erstwhile suburb which was merged with Greater Chennai Corportion. The cheap prices, however, do not draw people and some residents feel it is so because the negative perception about north Chennai as a hub of criminal activity, has a cascading effect. “These perceptions are baseless,” said Hussain, a resident of Sakthivel Nagar in Puzhal.

Connectivity being a major factor in development, the south outshines the north in this department as well. On GST Road, three rail over bridges have been inaugurated in the past five years and work is underway on two more. Moreover, the National Highways Authority of India is planning to convert GST Road from Perungalathur to Chengalpet a eightway lane by building an elevated corridor. On the other side, the 10km stretch on GNT Road lacks road infrastructure projects. The IT hub at Ambattur seems to have little impact on the stretch, unlike the information technology corridor of OMR, which spurred real estate projects in the neighbourhood.

Ajit Chordia, former president of Confederation of Real Estate Developers Association of India Chennai chapter observes that the government has a major role in making the stretch a residential area. He attributes the unequal development between GST and GNT to the way the city was planned, where in the industrial corridor was in the north and residential areas in the south. “The northern fringes of the city are ideal for residential apartments. But, the initiative has to come from the government, where Tamil Nadu Housing Development Board need to take up projects,” he said, adding that the speeding up the Smart City project at Ponneri could be a spur.

Grievances of little attention is paved towards launching new initiatives in these areas was visible among the locals. C Manoharan, a resident of Redhills said this stretch cannot be associated with any industry expect for the traditional rice mills. Noting that defence establishments at Avadi changed the face of the area he said. "Land at the airstrip in Sholavaram is unused for a long time. Why not the government explore a major initiative that would usher in development in our locality?"